ATTACHMENT D - SOLICITATION PROVISIONS - NX EQ BLOOD FLUID WARMING UNITS---.docx

36C10G25Q0074 NX EQ BLOOD FLUID WARMING UNITS

SECTION D – SOLICITATION PROVISIONS

D.1 52.204-24 REPRESENTATION REGARDING CERTAIN TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND VIDEO SURVEILLANCE SERVICES OR EQUIPMENT (NOV 2021) The Offeror shall not complete the representation at paragraph (d)(1) of this provision if the Offeror has represented that it "does not provide covered telecommunications equipment or services as a part of its offered products or services to the Government in the performance of any contract, subcontract, or other contractual instrument" in paragraph (c)(1) in the provision at 52.204-26, Covered Telecommunications Equipment or Services—Representation, or in paragraph (v)(2)(i) of the provision at 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Products or Commercial Services. The Offeror shall not complete the representation in paragraph (d)(2) of this provision if the Offeror has represented that it "does not use covered telecommunications equipment or services, or any equipment, system, or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services" in paragraph (c)(2) of the provision at 52.204-26, or in paragraph (v)(2)(ii) of the provision at 52.212-3.

(a) Definitions. As used in this provision— Backhaul, covered telecommunications equipment or services, critical technology, interconnection arrangements, reasonable inquiry, roaming, and substantial or essential component have the meanings provided in the clause 52.204-25, Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment.

(b) Prohibition.

(1) Section 889(a)(1)(A) of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232) prohibits the head of an executive agency on or after August 13, 2019, from procuring or obtaining, or extending or renewing a contract to procure or obtain, any equipment, system, or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system. Nothing in the prohibition shall be construed to—

(i) Prohibit the head of an executive agency from procuring with an entity to provide a service that connects to the facilities of a third-party, such as backhaul, roaming, or interconnection arrangements; or

(ii) Cover telecommunications equipment that cannot route or redirect user data traffic or cannot permit visibility into any user data or packets that such equipment transmits or otherwise handles.

(2) Section 889(a)(1)(B) of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232) prohibits the head of an executive agency on or after August 13, 2020, from entering into a contract or extending or renewing a contract with an entity that uses any equipment, system, or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system. This prohibition applies to the use of covered telecommunications equipment or services, regardless of whether that use is in performance of work under a Federal contract. Nothing in the prohibition shall be construed to—

(i) Prohibit the head of an executive agency from procuring with an entity to provide a service that connects to the facilities of a third-party, such as backhaul, roaming, or interconnection arrangements; or

(ii) Cover telecommunications equipment that cannot route or redirect user data traffic or cannot permit visibility into any user data or packets that such equipment transmits or otherwise handles.

(c) Procedures. The Offeror shall review the list of excluded parties in the System for Award Management (SAM) (https://www.sam.gov) for entities excluded from receiving federal awards for "covered telecommunications equipment or services".

(d) Representation. The Offeror represents that—

(1) It □ will, □ will not provide covered telecommunications equipment or services to the Government in the performance of any contract, subcontract or other contractual instrument resulting from this solicitation. The Offeror shall provide the additional disclosure information required at paragraph (e)(1) of this section if the Offeror responds "will" in paragraph (d)(1) of this section; and

(2) After conducting a reasonable inquiry, for purposes of this representation, the Offeror represents that— It □ does, □ does not use covered telecommunications equipment or services, or use any equipment, system, or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services. The Offeror shall provide the additional disclosure information required at paragraph (e)(2) of this section if the Offeror responds "does" in paragraph (d)(2) of this section.

(e) Disclosures.

(1) Disclosure for the representation in paragraph (d)(1) of this provision. If the Offeror has responded "will" in the representation in paragraph (d)(1) of this provision, the Offeror shall provide the following information as part of the offer:

(i) For covered equipment—

(A) The entity that produced the covered telecommunications equipment (include entity name, unique entity identifier, CAGE code, and whether the entity was the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or a distributor, if known);

(B) A description of all covered telecommunications equipment offered (include brand; model number, such as OEM number, manufacturer part number, or wholesaler number; and item description, as applicable); and

(C) Explanation of the proposed use of covered telecommunications equipment and any factors relevant to determining if such use would be permissible under the prohibition in paragraph (b)(1) of this provision.

(ii) For covered services—

(A) If the service is related to item maintenance: A description of all covered telecommunications services offered (include on the item being maintained: Brand; model number, such as OEM number, manufacturer part number, or wholesaler number; and item description, as applicable); or

(B) If not associated with maintenance, the Product Service Code (PSC) of the service being provided; and explanation of the proposed use of covered telecommunications services and any factors relevant to determining if such use would be permissible under the prohibition in paragraph (b)(1) of this provision.

(2) Disclosure for the representation in paragraph (d)(2) of this provision. If the Offeror has responded "does" in the representation in paragraph (d)(2) of this provision, the Offeror shall provide the following information as part of the offer:

(i) For covered equipment—

(A) The entity that produced the covered telecommunications equipment (include entity name, unique entity identifier, CAGE code, and whether the entity was the OEM or a distributor, if known);

(B) A description of all covered telecommunications equipment offered (include brand; model number, such as OEM number, manufacturer part number, or wholesaler number; and item description, as applicable); and

(C) Explanation of the proposed use of covered telecommunications equipment and any factors relevant to determining if such use would be permissible under the prohibition in paragraph (b)(2) of this provision.

(ii) For covered services—

(A) If the service is related to item maintenance: A description of all covered telecommunications services offered (include on the item being maintained: Brand; model number, such as OEM number, manufacturer part number, or wholesaler number; and item description, as applicable); or

(B) If not associated with maintenance, the PSC of the service being provided; and explanation of the proposed use of covered telecommunications services and any factors relevant to determining if such use would be permissible under the prohibition in paragraph (b)(2) of this provision.

(a) Definitions. As used in this provision, "covered telecommunications equipment or services" and "reasonable inquiry" have the meaning provided in the clause 52.204-25, Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment.

(b) Procedures. The Offeror shall review the list of excluded parties in the System for Award Management (SAM) ( https://www.sam.gov) for entities excluded from receiving federal awards for "covered telecommunications equipment or services".

(c)

(1) Representation. The Offeror represents that it □ does, □ does not provide covered telecommunications equipment or services as a part of its offered products or services to the Government in the performance of any contract, subcontract, or other contractual instrument.

(2) After conducting a reasonable inquiry for purposes of this representation, the offeror represents that it □ does, □ does not use covered telecommunications equipment or services, or any equipment, system, or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services.

(End of provision)

D.3 52.209-5 CERTIFICATION REGARDING RESPONSIBILITY MATTERS (AUG 2020)

(1) The Offeror certifies, to the best of its knowledge and belief, that—

(i) The Offeror and/or any of its Principals–

(A) Are □ are not □ presently debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, or declared ineligible for the award of contracts by any Federal agency;

(B) Have □ have not □, within a three-year period preceding this offer, been convicted of or had a civil judgment rendered against them for: commission of fraud or a criminal offense in connection with obtaining, attempting to obtain, or performing a public (Federal, State, or local) contract or subcontract; violation of Federal or State antitrust statutes relating to the submission of offers; or commission of embezzlement, theft, forgery, bribery, falsification or destruction of records, making false statements, tax evasion, violating Federal criminal tax laws, or receiving stolen property (if offeror checks "have", the offeror shall also see 52.209-7, if included in this solicitation);

(C) Are □ are not □ presently indicted for, or otherwise criminally or civilly charged by a governmental entity with, commission of any of the offenses enumerated in paragraph (a)(1)(i)(B) of this provision;

(D) Have □, have not □, within a three-year period preceding this offer, been notified of any delinquent Federal taxes in an amount that exceeds the threshold at 9.104-5(a)(2) for which the liability remains unsatisfied.

(1) Federal taxes are considered delinquent if both of the following criteria apply:

(i) The tax liability is finally determined. The liability is finally determined if it has been assessed. A liability is not finally determined if there is a pending administrative or judicial challenge. In the case of a judicial challenge to the liability, the liability is not finally determined until all judicial appeal rights have been exhausted.

(ii) The taxpayer is delinquent in making payment. A taxpayer is delinquent if the taxpayer has failed to pay the tax liability when full payment was due and required. A taxpayer is not delinquent in cases where enforced collection action is precluded.

(2) Examples.

(i) The taxpayer has received a statutory notice of deficiency, under I.R.C. § 6212, which entitles the taxpayer to seek Tax Court review of a proposed tax deficiency. This is not a delinquent tax because it is not a final tax liability. Should the taxpayer seek Tax Court review, this will not be a final tax liability until the taxpayer has exercised all judicial appeal rights.

(ii) The IRS has filed a notice of Federal tax lien with respect to an assessed tax liability, and the taxpayer has been issued a notice under I.R.C. § 6320 entitling the taxpayer to request a hearing with the IRS Office of Appeals contesting the lien filing, and to further appeal to the Tax Court if the IRS determines to sustain the lien filing. In the course of the hearing, the taxpayer is entitled to contest the underlying tax liability because the taxpayer has had no prior opportunity to contest the liability. This is not a delinquent tax because it is not a final tax liability. Should the taxpayer seek tax court review, this will not be a final tax liability until the taxpayer has exercised all judicial appeal rights.

(iii) The taxpayer has entered into an installment agreement pursuant to I.R.C. § 6159. The taxpayer is making timely payments and is in full compliance with the agreement terms. The taxpayer is not delinquent because the taxpayer is not currently required to make full payment.

(iv) The taxpayer has filed for bankruptcy protection. The taxpayer is not delinquent because enforced collection action is stayed under 11 U.S.C. 362 (the Bankruptcy Code).

(ii) The Offeror has □ has not □, within a three-year period preceding this offer, had one or more contracts terminated for default by any Federal agency.

(2) "Principal," for the purposes of this certification, means an officer, director, owner, partner, or a person having primary management or supervisory responsibilities within a business entity (e.g., general manager; plant manager; head of a division or business segment; and similar positions).

This Certification Concerns a Matter Within the Jurisdiction of an Agency of the United States and the Making of a False, Fictitious, or Fraudulent Certification May Render the Maker Subject to Prosecution Under Section 1001, Title 18, United States Code.

(b) The Offeror shall provide immediate written notice to the Contracting Officer if, at any time prior to contract award, the Offeror learns that its certification was erroneous when submitted or has become erroneous by reason of changed circumstances.

(c) A certification that any of the items in paragraph (a) of this provision exists will not necessarily result in withholding of an award under this solicitation. However, the certification will be considered in connection with a determination of the Offeror’s responsibility. Failure of the Offeror to furnish a certification or provide such additional information as requested by the Contracting Officer may render the Offeror non-responsible.

(d) Nothing contained in the foregoing shall be construed to require establishment of a system of records in order to render, in good faith, the certification required by paragraph (a) of this provision. The knowledge and information of an Offeror is not required to exceed that which is normally possessed by a prudent person in the ordinary course of business dealings.

(e) The certification in paragraph (a) of this provision is a material representation of fact upon which reliance was placed when making award. If it is later determined that the Offeror knowingly rendered an erroneous certification, in addition to other remedies available to the Government, the Contracting Officer may terminate the contract resulting from this solicitation for default.

(End of provision)

D.4 52.209-7 INFORMATION REGARDING RESPONSIBILITY MATTERS (OCT 2018)

(a) Definitions. As used in this provision— “Administrative proceeding” means a non-judicial process that is adjudicatory in nature in order to make a determination of fault or liability (e.g., Securities and Exchange Commission Administrative Proceedings, Civilian Board of Contract Appeals Proceedings, and Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals Proceedings). This includes administrative proceedings at the Federal and State level but only in connection with performance of a Federal contract or grant. It does not include agency actions such as contract audits, site visits, corrective plans, or inspection of deliverables.

“Federal contracts and grants with total value greater than $10,000,000” means—

(1) The total value of all current, active contracts and grants, including all priced options; and

(2) The total value of all current, active orders including all priced options under indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity, 8(a), or requirements contracts (including task and delivery and multiple-award Schedules).

“Principal” means an officer, director, owner, partner, or a person having primary management or supervisory responsibilities within a business entity (e.g., general manager; plant manager; head of a division or business segment; and similar positions).

(b) The offeror □ has □ does not have current active Federal contracts and grants with total value greater than $10,000,000.

(c) If the offeror checked “has” in paragraph (b) of this provision, the offeror represents, by submission of this offer, that the information it has entered in the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS) is current, accurate, and complete as of the date of submission of this offer with regard to the following information:

(1) Whether the offeror, and/or any of its principals, has or has not, within the last five years, in connection with the award to or performance by the offeror of a Federal contract or grant, been the subject of a proceeding, at the Federal or State level that resulted in any of the following dispositions:

(i) In a criminal proceeding, a conviction.

(ii) In a civil proceeding, a finding of fault and liability that results in the payment of a monetary fine, penalty, reimbursement, restitution, or damages of $5,000 or more.

(iii) In an administrative proceeding, a finding of fault and liability that results in–

(A) The payment of a monetary fine or penalty of $5,000 or more; or

(B) The payment of a reimbursement, restitution, or damages in excess of $100,000.

(iv) In a criminal, civil, or administrative proceeding, a disposition of the matter by consent or compromise with an acknowledgment of fault by the Contractor if the proceeding could have led to any of the outcomes specified in paragraphs (c)(1)(i), (c)(1)(ii), or (c)(1)(iii) of this provision.

(2) If the offeror has been involved in the last five years in any of the occurrences listed in (c)(1) of this provision, whether the offeror has provided the requested information with regard to each occurrence.

(d) The offeror shall post the information in paragraphs (c)(1)(i) through (c)(1)(iv) of this provision in FAPIIS as required through maintaining an active registration in the System for Award Management, which can be accessed via https://www.sam.gov (see 52.204-7).

(End of provision) D.5 52.209-11 REPRESENTATION BY CORPORATIONS REGARDING DELINQUENT TAX LIABILITY OR A FELONY CONVICTION UNDER ANY FEDERAL LAW (FEB 2016)

(a) As required by sections 744 and 745 of Division E of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (Pub. L. 113-235), and similar provisions, if contained in subsequent appropriations acts, the Government will not enter into a contract with any corporation that–

(1) Has any unpaid Federal tax liability that has been assessed, for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an agreement with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability, where the awarding agency is aware of the unpaid tax liability, unless an agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that suspension or debarment is not necessary to protect the interests of the Government; or

(2) Was convicted of a felony criminal violation under any Federal law within the preceding 24 months, where the awarding agency is aware of the conviction, unless an agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that this action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Government.

(b) The Offeror represents that–

(1) It is □ is not □ a corporation that has any unpaid Federal tax liability that has been assessed, for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an agreement with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability; and

(2) It is □ is not □ a corporation that was convicted of a felony criminal violation under a federal law within the preceding 24 months.

(End of Provision) D.6 ADDENDUM to FAR 52.212-1 INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS—COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES ITEMS (SEP 2023) Provisions that are incorporated by reference (by Citation Number, Title, and Date), have the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available.

The following provisions are incorporated into 52.212-1 as an addendum to this solicitation:

A. QUOTES SUBMISSION

1. INTRODUCTION: The Vendor’s quote shall be submitted via email to Contract Specialist at Jalima.Jones@va.gov and Contracting Officer at Sara.Vickroy@va.gov All quotes shall be submitted no later than May 12, 2025 by 04:30 PM EST.

The Vendor’s quote shall consist of the four (4) volumes listed below. Each volume shall be submitted on a separate PDF or Excel document. One copy of each volume will be required.

a. Volume I: Technical Factors

b. Volume II: Past Performance

c. Volume III: Price

d. Volume IV: Offer, Amendments, and Certifications & Representations

The use of hyperlinks and embedded links in quotes is prohibited.

Quotes will be evaluated solely on the information contained in quotes without reference to extraneous information.

WARNING: Please do not wait until the last minute to submit your quotes. Late quotes may not be accepted for evaluation. To avoid submission of late quotes, the Government recommends the transmission of your quote file 24 hours prior to the required quote due date and time. Please be advised that timeliness is determined by the date and time an Offeror’s quote is received by the Government not when an Offeror attempted transmission.

2. QUOTE FILES

a. Format: The submission shall be clearly indexed and logically assembled. Each volume shall be clearly identified and shall begin at the top of a page. All pages of each volume shall be appropriately numbered and identified by the complete company name, date, and solicitation number in the header and/or footer. Quote page limitations are not applicable to this procurement. All files shall be submitted as either a Microsoft Excel File (.xls) or an Acrobat Portable Document Format (.pdf) or as compatible as indicated in the table. Page size shall be no greater than 8 1/2" x 11" with printing on one side only. The top, bottom, left, and right margins shall be a minimum of one (1”) inch each. Font size shall be no smaller than 12-point. Arial or Times New Roman fonts are required. Characters shall be set at no less than normal spacing and 100% scale. Tables and illustrations may use a reduced font size no smaller than eight (8)-point and may be landscape. Line spacing shall be set at no less than single space. Each paragraph shall be separated by at least one blank line. Page numbers, company logos, and headers and footers are not bound by the 12-point font requirement. Footnotes to text shall not be added. All proprietary information shall be clearly and properly marked.

b. File Packaging: Do not compress (zip) quote files. VA Network Security Operations Center (NSOC) has temporarily blocked email attachments with the “.zip” extension as a mitigation measure against the ongoing world-wide ransomware event impacting many organizations. During this time, .zip file extensions will be permanently stripped from email traffic and will not be recoverable. Due to VA email file size restrictions, vendors are encouraged to logically separate their quote into separate emails. If this is necessary, offerors should attempt to contain complete volume within single email transmissions (and not split volumes). Vendors are encouraged to review and ensure that sufficient bandwidth is available on their end of the transmission.

c. Content Requirements: All information shall be confined to the appropriate file. The Vendor shall confine submissions to essential matters, sufficient to define the quote and provide an adequate basis for evaluation. Vendors are responsible for including sufficient details, in a concise manner, to permit a complete and accurate evaluation of each quote. The title requirements for each file are shown in the Table below.

d. Quotes submitted in response to this solicitation shall contain the following in separate volumes.

VOLUME I – TECHNICAL FACTOR

Vendors shall provide descriptive literature which will be used to thoroughly evaluate each quote to determine the extent to which it meets the Salient Characteristics (SCs) listed in the Combined Synopsis/Solicitation Notice – Product Description of the solicitation. All the SCs listed in the solicitation must be met to be considered technically acceptable and eligible for award.

Vendors are required to complete the highlighted area on the SCs Chart located on the Combined Synopsis/Solicitation document listing the location where compliance to the SCs can be found. The chart must be included with the vendor’s submission.

Vendor may propose any product solution or configuration so long as the solution proposed meets the SCs. Equivalent products being proposed in the Technical Volume must also be clearly identified in the Pricing Volume. Products proposed in the technical volume must be captured on – appear and correspond with the Offeror’s Pricing Volume (Attachment A - Price Cost Schedule of the solicitation).

Vendors may propose any additional ancillary products which they deem to be essential to the functionality of the proposed solution; these ancillary items must be quantified in the vendor’s pricing volume with an estimated quantity of zero (0).

Only original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or equal parts are acceptable. Only new equipment is acceptable; no remanufactured, used/refurbished or "gray market" items. No product in development shall be considered. All items must be covered by the manufacturer's warranty.

Distributors must be authorized distributors/resellers as certified by the OEM (i.e., in OEM letter with a current date and duly signed by OEM’s authorized representative) to be eligible for award. The OEM letter must be submitted with the quote and valid for the life of the contract.

Quotes which fail to meet the requirements of the solicitation, and all the minimum SCs will be rated “Unacceptable” and will be ineligible for award.

Further, for each equal product, the offeror must include a description reflecting the SCs and level of quality that will satisfy the salient physical, functional, or performance characteristics of the equal product(s) specified in the solicitation. The offeror must also clearly identify the item by brand name (if any) and make/model number. Finally, the offeror must include descriptive literature, such as illustrations, drawings, or a clear reference to previously furnished descriptive data or information available to the Contracting Officer, and clearly describe any modifications it plans to make to a product to make it conform to the solicitation requirements.

No pricing should be included in Volume I.

VOLUME II – PAST PERFORMANCE:

The offeror shall complete Attachment F: Past Performance References in its entirety, listing a total of three contracts/orders for work performed in the past three years or currently being performed, for nationwide delivery of BLOOD FLUID WARMING UNITS. The Government will make the determination of relevance (based on size, scope, and/or complexity of requirement). “Relevance” is defined as, meeting the size, scope and/or complexity compared to the product description of this requirement. “Size” is defined as providing medical products to over 100 facilities CONUS/OCONUS. “Scope” is defined within the Solicitation under Product Description, Section 1 - Scope of Work. “Complexity” is defined as the ability to meet delivery times and dates based on the ARO in the contract.

Contracts/orders listed may include those entered into with the Federal Government, agencies of state and local governments and commercial concerns. Offerors may also submit past performance information regarding predecessor companies, key personnel who have relevant experience or subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement when such information is relevant to the acquisition. For the purposes of this solicitation, a major subcontract is defined as 20% of the total contract effort. Data concerning the prime contractor shall be provided first, followed by each proposed major subcontractor, in alphabetical order.

Offerors shall indicate on Attachment F if there are Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) / Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS) report(s) available for each reference. In the event an assessment was not completed in CPARS / PPIRS for the contract/order, offerors may request the reference point of contact (POC) to complete and submit a Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) (See Attachment G of this solicitation). The offeror shall instruct the POC at the referenced entity to return a copy of the completed PPQ directly to the Contracting Officer and the Contract Specialist at Sara.Vickroy@va.gov and Jalima.Jones@va.gov NO LATER THAN THE CLOSING DATE OF THE SOLICITATION (inclusive of any closing date extensions granted via amendment). PPQs will only be evaluated for those contracts/orders that do not have a CPARS report available.

The Government is not required to contact references provided by the offeror. Also, references other than those identified by the offeror may be contacted by the Government to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation of the offeror's past performance. The Government may consider past performance information obtained through other sources which is reasonably available and determined to be relevant. Past performance information obtained will be used for both the responsibility determination and best value decision.

Offerors shall indicate on Attachment F if they have no record of relevant or recent past performance.

VOLUME III – PRICE FACTOR:

The Vendor shall complete Attachment A - Price Cost Schedule for the base year and all option years and submit it in Volume III of their quote.

In order to maximize the VA’s buying power and leverage the best value for the taxpayer, the VA is seeking volume discounts. It is expected that as the output and scale of an operation increases, that the unit cost per item should decrease as fixed costs are spread over more units of output. The VA expects that a portion of these reduced costs be will passed-on and reflected in lower unit pricing.

Price Rounding Issue - The Government requires Vendors to propose unit prices and total prices that are two (2) decimal places and requires the unit prices and total prices to be displayed as two (2) decimal places. Ensure that the two (2) digit unit price multiplied by the item quantity equals the two (2) digit total item price (there should be no rounding). {If an Excel spreadsheet is submitted by the Offeror, the Offeror shall ensure that the actual values in the spreadsheet cells are no more than two (2) decimal places even if values in the spreadsheet cells are formatted to display two (2) decimal places. (i.e., =ROUND((T2*1.05),2) for all option periods to calculate for escalation)}

The Government requests the Vendor provide prices, warranties, conditions, benefits and terms that are at least equal to or more favorable than the prices, warranties, conditions, benefits and terms quoted by the Vendor to any customers for the same or a substantially similar quantity and type of service.

The current SLA which applies to this contract action is 3.0%. This SLA Fee shall be imbedded in the awarded contract/agreement price(s) and offers submitted in response to this solicitation shall include this SLA Fee in the price of every line item offered.

The Contractor will provide literature for each CLIN listed with Technical Specifications, Product Brochure, and Color Swatch (if applicable) at no additional cost prior to the contract effective date.

VOLUME IV – OFFER, AMENDMENTS, AND CERTIFICATIONS/REPRESENTATIONS

Certifications and Representations - An authorized official of the firm shall sign the offer sheet and all certifications requiring original signature. The offer sheet should be dated and submitted on letterhead stationery. An Acrobat PDF file shall be created to capture the signatures for submission.

At a minimum the offer sheet shall contain the following:

a. Solicitation Number;

b. Acknowledgement of Amendments, if any;

c. The name, address, and telephone number of the Offeror

d. Tax Identification Number (TIN)

e. Unique Entity Identity (UEI) Number / DUNS Number / Cage Code

f. Point of Contact for submission of orders if awarded contract.

g. Authorized Distributor Letter certified by OEM with current date.

h. Offeror shall submit representations and certifications IAW FAR 52.212-3 if not completed in SAM.

i. Complete FAR 52.209-7 and FAR 52.225-6 provisions

j. Period for acceptance of offers. The Offeror agrees to hold the prices in its quote firm for 90 calendar days from the date specified for receipt of quotes unless another time period is specified in an addendum to the solicitation.

k. A statement specifying the extent of agreement with all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation. Offerors that fail to furnish required representations or information or reject the terms and conditions of the solicitation may be excluded from consideration.

l. All certified HUBZone small business concerns are required to identify themselves and state whether they elect to waive the evaluation preference.

Offerors are hereby advised that any Offeror-imposed terms and conditions and/or assumptions which deviate from the Government’s material terms and conditions established by the Solicitation, may render the Offeror’s quote Unacceptable, and thus ineligible for award.

Any questions regarding this Request for Quote (RFQ) shall be addressed in writing to Contract Specialist at Jalima.Jones@va.gov and Contracting Officer at Sara.Vickroy@va.gov . No later than May 05, 2025, 4:30pm EST. No calls will be accepted.

(End of Addendum to 52.212-1)

D.7 52.212-2 EVALUATION—COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES (NOV 2021)

The following provisions are incorporated into 52.212-2 as an addendum to this solicitation:

A. BASIS FOR REQUIREMENTS CONTRACT ESTABLISHMENT

The Government intends to award a single Requirements contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose quote conforms to the solicitation, and which represents the best value to the Government, with consideration given to the following evaluation Factors: Technical, Past Performance, and Price.

The Technical Factor is significantly more important than Past Performance. When combined, the non-price factors, are significantly more important than price. To receive consideration for award, a rating of no less than” Acceptable" must be achieved for the Technical Factors. All of the minimum salient characteristics listed in the Combined Synopsis/Solicitation - Minimum Salient Characteristics/Product Description, must be met to achieve a rating of “Acceptable.” Products failing to meet the salient characteristics, and all the terms and conditions of the solicitation will be eliminated and receive no further consideration. Offerors are cautioned that the award may not necessarily be made to the Offeror proposing the lowest price, or to the Offeror with the most highly rated technical quote. Award may be made to other than the lowest priced quote, if the Government determines that a price premium is warranted due to the merits of one or more of the non-price factors.

B. FACTORS TO BE EVALUATED

1. Technical

2. Past Performance

3. Price

C. EVALUATION APPROACH

All quotes shall be subject to evaluation by a team of Government personnel. The Government reserves the right to award without discussions based upon the initial evaluation of quotes. The quote will be evaluated strictly in accordance with its written content. Quotes which merely restate the requirement or state that the requirement will be met, without providing supporting rationale, are not sufficient. Contents of the written quotes will be evaluated to determine the degree and extent to which the requirements set forth in the solicitation are satisfied. The scope of this procurement includes being able to provide the products to all VHA facilities located in the United States and its territories.

1. Technical Evaluation Approach:

Technical Factor Rating Definitions:

Descriptive literature will be used to thoroughly evaluate each quote to determine the extent to which it meets the salient characteristics listed in the Combined Synopsis/Solicitation Notice Product Description. To receive a rating of Acceptable, the quote must demonstrate the Offeror’s ability to meet or exceed all the salient characteristics listed in Combined Synopsis/Solicitation Notice Product Description Salient Characteristics chart.

Offerors may propose any product solution or configuration so long as the solution proposed meets the salient characteristics. Equivalent products being quoted in the Technical Volume must also be clearly identified in the Pricing Volume. Products quoted in the technical volume must be captured on – appear and correspond with -- the Offeror’s pricing volume (Attachment A Price Cost Schedule of the solicitation).

Offerors may propose any additional ancillary products which they deem to be essential to the functionality of the proposed solution; these ancillary items must be quantified in the Offeror’s pricing volume with an estimated quantity of zero (0). Only new original equipment is acceptable; no remanufactured or "gray market" items. No product in development shall be considered. All items must be covered by the manufacturer's warranty.

Distributors must be authorized distributors/resellers as certified by the OEM (i.e., in OEM letter with a current date and duly signed by OEM’s authorized representative) to be eligible for award. The OEM letter must be valid for the life of the contract. Those quotes which fail to meet the requirements of the solicitation, and all of the minimum salient characteristics will be rated “Unacceptable” and will be ineligible for award.

Products proposed in the technical volume must be captured in the vendor’s pricing volume. Offers that merely restate the requirement or state that the requirement shall be met, without providing supporting rationale, will not be sufficient. To be considered for award products need to meet the SCs.

2. Past Performance Evaluation Approach:

Past performance will be evaluated to determine whether each reference is relevant (based on size, scope, and complexity to this requirement), recent (within the past three years), and reflects performance which is satisfactory or better. The offeror will be evaluated to determine the extent to which their performance demonstrates the likelihood of successful performance in providing requirements similar in size, scope, and complexity to this solicitation.

The Government may consider past performance information obtained through other sources which is reasonably available and determined to be relevant. Past performance information obtained will be used for both the responsibility determination and best value decision.

No relevant or recent past performance, as indicated on Attachment F or based on the determination of relevance by the Government, will be considered neutral.

The Past Performance Factor Rating will be expressed as an adjectival assessment of High Risk, Moderate Risk, Low Risk, or Neutral.

3. Price Evaluation Approach:

The total price will be evaluated IAW FAR part 13. The Government will evaluate price to determine whether or not it is considered fair and reasonable. In order to maximize the VA’s buying power and leverage the best value for the taxpayer, the VA is seeking volume discounts. It is expected that as the output and scale of an operation increases, that the unit cost per item should decrease as fixed costs are spread over more units of output. The VA expects that a portion of these reduced costs will passed-on and reflected in lower unit pricing.

Attachment A, Price Cost Schedule will be reviewed and all total proposed unit prices for each CLIN (inclusive of option periods) will be added for a total cost for evaluation purposes. Each CLIN will be evaluated using the estimated quantities provided for in Attachment A Price Cost Schedule. The Total Proposed Cost will be the aggregate sum of all CLINs for the entire period of performance. The SLA fee of 3% shall be included in the total proposed unit price.

Example:

CLIN 0001: $61.80 x 2 = $123.60 CLIN 0002: $46.25 x 4 = $185.00 Total Evaluated Cost = $308.60

The proposed firm fixed unit prices will be binding and incorporated in the resultant contract and utilized for all future orders placed during the term of the contract. The estimated quantities listed in ATTACHMENT A, Price Cost Schedule are listed for informational and evaluation purposes only and do not obligate the Government to purchase such quantity nor does the Government guarantee any volume of purchases through this contract. Based on the anticipated volume of orders to be issued under this contract, Offerors are strongly encouraged to provide additional discounts and price reductions from their list prices.

In addition, if an offer is received from a Small Business Administration (SBA) certified HUBZone small business concern, offers will be evaluated IAW FAR 52.219-4 by adding a factor of 10 percent to the price of all offers, except—

(i) Offers from HUBZone small business concerns that have not waived the evaluation preference; and

(ii) Otherwise, successful offers from small business concerns.

Unbalanced Pricing - The Government may evaluate whether the Offeror has submitted unbalanced pricing. An unbalanced price is one where the price of one or more contract line items is significantly overstated or understated and which will result in the Government paying an unreasonably high price for contract performance or otherwise present an unacceptable level of risk to the Government. If the Contracting Officer determines that the risk is unacceptable, then the offer can be rejected.

SUBCONTRACTING PLAN REQUIREMENTS:

The Contracting Officer may require the submission of a subcontracting plan at any time prior to award from only the apparently successful offeror. If the apparently successful Offeror fails to negotiate a subcontracting plan acceptable to the Contracting Officer within the time limit prescribed by the Contracting Officer, the Offeror will be ineligible for award.

Only the apparently successful Offerors subcontracting plan will be evaluated. The subcontracting plan will be evaluated as follows:

Acceptable Subcontracting Plan is submitted and is in accordance with FAR 52.219-9 that addresses all elements of FAR Part 19.704(a).

Unacceptable Subcontracting Plan is not submitted and/or is not in accordance with FAR 52.219-9 and does not address all elements of FAR Part 19.704(a).

(End of Addendum to 52.212-2)

D.8 52.212-3 OFFEROR REPRESENTATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS—COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICE (MAY 2024) The Offeror shall complete only paragraph (b) of this provision if the Offeror has completed the annual representations and certification electronically in the System for Award Management (SAM) accessed through https://www.sam.gov. If the Offeror has not completed the annual representations and certifications electronically, the Offeror shall complete only paragraphs (c) through (v) of this provision.

(a) Definitions. As used in this provision— Covered telecommunications equipment or services has the meaning provided in the clause 52.204-25, Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment.

Economically disadvantaged women-owned small business (EDWOSB) concern means a small business concern that is at least 51 percent directly and unconditionally owned by, and the management and daily business operations of which are controlled by, one or more women who are citizens of the United States and who are economically disadvantaged in accordance with 13 CFR 127, and the concern is identified by SBA or an approved third-party certifier in accordance with 13 CFR 127.300. It automatically qualifies as a women-owned small business eligible under the WOSB Program.

Forced or indentured child labor means all work or service—

(1) Exacted from any person under the age of 18 under the menace of any penalty for its nonperformance and for which the worker does not offer himself voluntarily; or

(2) Performed by any person under the age of 18 pursuant to a contract the enforcement of which can be accomplished by process or penalties.

Highest-level owner means the entity that owns or controls an immediate owner of the offeror, or that owns or controls one or more entities that control an immediate owner of the offeror. No entity owns or exercises control of the highest-level owner.

Immediate owner means an entity, other than the offeror, that has direct control of the offeror. Indicators of control include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: Ownership or interlocking management, identity of interests among family members, shared facilities and equipment, and the common use of employees.

Inverted domestic corporation means a foreign incorporated entity that meets the definition of an inverted domestic corporation under 6 U.S.C. 395(b), applied in accordance with the rules and definitions of 6 U.S.C. 395(c).

Manufactured end product means any end product in product and service codes (PSCs) 1000-9999, except—

(1) PSC 5510, Lumber and Related Basic Wood Materials;

(2) Product or Service Group (PSG) 87, Agricultural Supplies;

(3) PSG 88, Live Animals;

(4) PSG 89, Subsistence;

(5) PSC 9410, Crude Grades of Plant Materials;

(6) PSC 9430, Miscellaneous Crude Animal Products, Inedible;

(7) PSC 9440, Miscellaneous Crude Agricultural and Forestry Products;

(8) PSC 9610, Ores;

(9) PSC 9620, Minerals, Natural and Synthetic; and

(10) PSC 9630, Additive Metal Materials.

Place of manufacture means the place where an end product is assembled out of components, or otherwise made or processed from raw materials into the finished product that is to be provided to the Government. If a product is disassembled and reassembled, the place of reassembly is not the place of manufacture.

Predecessor means an entity that is replaced by a successor and includes any predecessors of the predecessor.

Reasonable inquiry has the meaning provided in the clause 52.204–25, Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment.

Restricted business operations means business operations in Sudan that include power production activities, mineral extraction activities, oil-related activities, or the production of military equipment, as those terms are defined in the Sudan Accountability and Divestment Act of 2007 (Pub. L. 110-174). Restricted business operations do not include business operations that the person (as that term is defined in Section 2 of the Sudan Accountability and Divestment Act of 2007) conducting the business can demonstrate—

(1) Are conducted under contract directly and exclusively with the regional government of southern Sudan;

(2) Are conducted pursuant to specific authorization from the Office of Foreign Assets Control in the Department of the Treasury, or are expressly exempted under Federal law from the requirement to be conducted under such authorization;

(3) Consist of providing goods or services to marginalized populations of Sudan;

(4) Consist of providing goods or services to an internationally recognized peacekeeping force or humanitarian organization;

(5) Consist of providing goods or services that are used only to promote health or education; or

(6) Have been voluntarily suspended.

Sensitive technology—

(1) Means hardware, software, telecommunications equipment, or any other technology that is to be used specifically—

(i) To restrict the free flow of unbiased information in Iran; or

(ii) To disrupt, monitor, or otherwise restrict speech of the people of Iran; and

(2) Does not include information or informational materials the export of which the President does not have the authority to regulate or prohibit pursuant to section 203(b)(3) of the…